Omaha daily bee., 1887-09-27
THE COST OF FINE PIANOS.
One CosttnR $4,000 Good Enough
for Jay Gould.


One Costjng $4,000 Good Enough
for Jay Gould.
New York Sun: The one subject which
piano dealers and piano manufactures
and workmen in piano factories have
been talking for the past few days is the
piano said to be on its way to America
for MIR. Henry Il. Marquand, with five
figures following the dollar malk in the
invoice thus: $46,95O. No such price as
1880 was ever paid for piano before,
but no prophet will venture to say that
no one will pay SO much again.
What do you think about such
piano." said reporter to an uptown
dealer.
Had you arrived at the age of matur.
ity before the war of the rebellion
began" said the dealer. 'and had you
been of cynical disposition nj that
time, you would have been interested,
not to say astounded, mt the large sums
OF money paid rs income taxes by men
IN this town: 1t gave one notOriety to
pay large income tax, and no one was
debarred from paying as good tax as
be Ss fhUss %i ba psrnngs b WoS S0nd Sa1s be
be inlaid with gold and have the mono-
gram set in diamonds before the bill
could honestly call for half as much as
that"
What, then, do the elegant pianos of
the men of great wealth CO stg"
Ordinarily from 81, 500 to $4,000. Mrs.
Jay Gould bought one recently that cost
$500. 1t was an upright grand and just
as fine an instrument IN everything that
goes to make piano as ever left the fac
tory OF one of the best known makers in
the city. G. P. Huntington has recently
purchased piano. His cost 81, 900. while
Judge Hilton, another millionaire, got
one not long ago for which he paid
little more. Il, 200. believe. Now these
instruments were the very best the work.
men could produce. The builders knew,
OF course, that it would help them to
sell fine pianos to other families if
make of instruments. The choicest
woods, seasoned to the exact dot
were used in the cases; extra quality of
cloth worth $1S q yard where the ordinary
stuff used Is worth from IS 70 $40 went
into the actions; the ivory was selected
from perhaps a hundred different tusks.
and so on from the castors under the legs
to the yarnish on top, everything was the
best. The monograms were worked out
in gold or antique metal. or some other
expensive stuff, and when the instru-
ments were set up in the parlors of the
purchasers there was a richness to the
tones that would enchant any one. And
the tone was there to remain;
such an instrument will last Won
derfully. But, after ALL you can get Just
as good an instrument, one with precisely
the same tones and one that will last just
as well. for less than half the money paid
by MIR. Gould.
Still more expensive pianos can be
made. They have been made that cost
as high as $1,000 The late Captain James
b. Eads, the Mississippi jetty man, had
such an instrument. Ingersoll, tine chair
manufacturer, had one that cost $4, 800,
and it was an honest price. To build
such piano takes great deal of time;
fifteen months is not too much to devote
to the building Of the case. The wood to
begin with may be South American wal
nut, or San Domingo mahogany, or Tur-
kish walnut, or genuine ebony. The case
will be made of solid wood.